DALLAS – Thousands of people gathered Monday night outside Dallas City Hall for a candlelight vigil for the five officers killed and seven wounded four days earlier.
On Tuesday, President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush will attend an interfaith memorial.
The officers were ambushed when a lone gunman opened fire on them after a rally downtown.
For the president, the decision to return early from an overseas trip after a series of shocking shootings will prove to be easy compared to his next challenge: Comforting an America that has witnessed a rash of shootings.
To some degree, the trip is a familiar ritual for a president who has embarked in recent years on similar consolation missions with relentless frequency. But it's clear that Obama views the moment as distinct. In choosing to the deliver a speech, rather than a private visit with families, Obama has tasked himself with ministering to Americans as they make sense of a frustrating cloud of issues swirling around the shootings.
Many who attended the vigil Monday said they came to show their support.
"And I think you want to be able to share. Share in that person’s pain because you know how much it would hurt to lose a loved one," Amy Montoya Gayler said.
Others had questions that are often asked after such tragic events.
“How could this happen here?” Monica Parrish wondered. “Why did it have to happen here? How do we keep people safe anymore?”
Officers lined the streets Monday evening during the vigil.
Many of the men and women from police departments from across the country -- standing shoulder to shoulder with other people in the crowd not just as a show of force, but a show of solidarity.
“When you are watching it on TV your heart just goes out to them (the officers) and you wish you could have done something,” Larry Bush said.
Other attendees said Monday’s vigil and Tuesday’s memorial might not help the families of the fallen officers, but it is a place to start.
Stay with KSAT throughout the day. We have multiple crews in Dallas for the president’s visit and will have coverage on air and online.